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As a very modern human rights catalogue containing many rights not found in established bills of rights, the Charter indeed looks good on paper. Those familiar with the main principles of EU law can usually quickly recite that the Charter is always binding on the EU, and binding on Member States only when they are "implementing EU law". But what does this often-quoted language from Article 51 of the Charter actually mean?

Workers are being severely exploited for their labour across the EU, and
inspections are not effective at stopping this reality. Based on interviews with
almost 240 workers – including non-EU citizens who came to the EU and
EU nationals who moved to another EU country to work – a new FRA report
outlines the problem and identifies ways to bolster inspections.

Severe labour exploitation is widespread across the European Union. While workplace inspections can help counter this phenomenon, they need to be strengthened to do so effectively. Based on interviews and focus group discussions with almost 240 exploited workers active in diverse economic sectors, this report provides important evidence on how unscrupulous employers manipulate and undermine inspections, and on what can be done to counteract such efforts.

The founding treaties, the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and secondary EU law all provide for EU citizens’ freedom to
move and reside freely in any EU country of their choice. Growing numbers of citizens, and their family members, are making
use of this freedom and related rights, such as the right not to be discriminated against based on nationality and the right to
vote in certain elections in the host Member State. But making these rights a reality remains a challenge.
This report presents an EU-wide, comparative overview of the application of the Free Movement Directive (2004/38/EC)
across the 28 Member States based on a review of select case law at national level.

The stories of the domestic workers FRA interviewed for this paper reveal appalling working conditions
and fundamental rights abuses in private homes across the EU. These stories indicate that, seven years
on from FRA’s first report on domestic workers in 2011, little has changed in terms of the risks and
experiences of severe labour exploitation domestic workers in the EU face.

The year 2017 brought both progress and setbacks in terms of rights protection. The European Pillar of Social Rights marked an important move towards a more ‘social Europe’. But, as experiences with the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights underscore, agreement on a text is merely a first step. Even in its eighth year as the EU's binding bill of rights, the Charter's potential was not fully exploited, highlighting the need to more actively promote its use.

The year 2017 brought both progress and setbacks in terms of fundamental rights protection. FRA’s Fundamental Rights Report 2018 reviews major developments in the EU between
January and December 2017, and outlines FRA’s opinions thereon.

Civil society organisations in the European Union play a crucial role in promoting fundamental
rights, but it has become harder for them do so – due to both legal and practical restrictions.
This summary outlines the main
findings and FRA’s opinions on the different
types and patterns of challenges faced by civil society
organisations across the EU,

This report outlines Member States’ approaches to age requirements and limits
regarding child participation in judicial proceedings; procedural safeguards for, and rights of, children involved in criminal
proceedings; as well as issues related to depriving children of their liberty.

European non-discrimination law, as constituted in particular by the EU non-discrimination
directives, and Article 14 of and Protocol 12 to the European Convention on Human Rights, prohibits
discrimination across a range of contexts and grounds. This handbook examines European non-discrimination
law stemming from these two sources as complementary systems, drawing on
them interchangeably to the extent that they overlap, while highlighting differences where
these exist.